


Could you get any Colter?

by CupOfEarleGrey



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Coffee, Cold Weather, Established Relationship, Fluff, Gen, Huddling For Warmth, Lap Sitting, mindless self indulgence - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 20:21:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20180167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CupOfEarleGrey/pseuds/CupOfEarleGrey
Summary: You discover Javier on the verge of freezing to death during guard duty in Colter, so you make it your goal to warm him up.





	Could you get any Colter?

With a breathy sigh, you rose from your seat. The pink-tinted faces of your companions all peered up at you from inside their bundled layers. Though it had been burning for days now, the little stove barely warmed the small hut you were all gathered in. Everyone still shivered and shuddered, rubbing their frozen hands together in hopes of bringing some sensation back into them.

You were tired of sitting. It only let the cold settle deeper and deeper into your bones. Bringing your gloved hands to your lips, you huffed a hot breath into them and hurriedly shoved them deep into your pockets. The brief warmth you had instilled in them vanished almost instantly. Hunching your shoulders and tipping your head forward, you pushed the cabin door open and stepped into the snow.

The glare made you squint. Somewhere the sun must be shining, but the warmth was as absent as the dead. Everything was still, save for the harsh breeze that bit your skin and tore through clothing as though it were gauze. Your whole body quaked as a gust swelled and you hurried on your way. The virgin snow crunched and squeaked under your feet as you went, occasionally making you stumble when you hit a dense patch. A pair of eyes watched your unsteady progress across the camp, unbeknownst to you.

“You should get inside, _mi amor_.” Javier spoke up once you got close. “And keep warm.”  
You looked up at him in surprise. You had been so focused on making it to your destination without falling that you had looked nowhere but at your feet. He was stood by a campfire, gripping a rifle in his hands, his moustache in imminent danger of freezing off.  
“What are you doing out here?” You asked, your breath a visible cloud.  
“Guard duty.”

Javier’s whole body shuddered as another breeze tore through the both of you. His teeth chattered, and he performed a sort of jig in an effort to shake off the cold. You frowned at the sight, noting the snow caking his hat and poncho.  
“I think you need to get inside.” You told him. “You will freeze to death if you stay out here any longer.”  
“I’m fine.” He shrugged unconvincingly.

Retracting your hand from your pocket, you reached out to brush the snow off his shoulder.  
“How long have you been out here?”  
“I don’t know… few hours?”  
“Excuse me.”  
You pushed past him and went into the house he was guarding. Most of the men were in there, huddled around the fireplace with Dutch who was giving some long-winded speech. Looking around at all the able-bodied men, perfectly warm and comfortable made you angrier than you already were.

“Would one of you show some common decency and take over for Javier?” You addressed the room at large, glaring at them all. “He’s about to freeze to death out there!”  
The room fell deathly silent as every man looked around at you. None of them were happy to oblige your request, quickly shifting uncomfortably and averting their eyes. You fixed Dutch with an imploring look and he took charge.  
“Bill.” He smiled at the larger man. “If you would be so kind as to do as (Y/N) asks.”

Bill cut you a glare that plainly demanded to know why you couldn’t replace Javier yourself, but he would not argue with an order from Dutch. He dragged himself to his feet with a grunt.  
“Sure…” He grumbled as he pushed past you.  
You thanked Dutch and followed Bill outside.

You watched as he growled at Javier, practically snatching the rifle out of his hands. As frozen as he was, Javier was in no fit state to call him out or argue. He let Bill take over without a word and turned to head into the cabin, but you caught his arm instead. Wordlessly, you steered him off towards the hut Pearson had adopted as a kitchen. It was one of the warmer spots because of the blazing fire.

The camp cook was missing from his post, giving the pair of you some privacy. You made Javier stand as close to the firepit as possible without lighting himself on fire. Then you busied yourself with filling the percolator with water and placing it by the flames to boil. You took your place beside him, watching as he held his hands close to the flames and bounced lightly from foot to foot. At least the snow on his poncho was melting.

“I can’t believe how cold it is up here.” You sighed.  
“It’s terrible.” He agreed through clenched teeth. “All this snow… it makes everything wet.”  
“That’s what’s keeping us all cold. We can’t get warm enough to dry.”  
“Ay, you’re telling me.”  
He shuddered harshly again, and you instinctively wrapped your arms around him, wanting to warm him up. Javier froze at the unexpected contact. While he loved physical affection, he disliked public displays of it, especially when he wasn’t the one to initiate. Sensing his discomfort, you released him again and blushed.

“Sorry, Javier.” You mumbled. “I just wanted to warm you up.”  
“No, it’s okay.” He huffed and shifted closer to you. “You can.”  
Javier fixed his gaze on the fire and did his ‘get warm’ dance again. You smiled at his awkwardness and cautiously reached out to him. You slid your arm around his shoulders and he moved closer to you, circling his arm under yours and around your back, still facing the fire. It wasn’t exactly what you had hoped for, but he sighed at warmth the contact brought.

You stood together like that for a long while, letting the warmth of the fire and shared body heat thaw your frozen limbs. Javier’s shivering slowly faded as he warmed up from his hours spent in the freezing wind. You detached yourself from him and removed a tin of coffee from the depths of your coat’s inner pockets. He raised his eyebrows in surprise at your previously concealed resource, but you only smiled and filled the pot with a helping of the grounds.

“My secret.” You grinned as you stowed the tin away again. “It won’t last five minutes if anyone else finds out.”  
Replacing the lid on the pot, you retrieved two cups from Pearson’s stash and approached Javier again.  
“You won’t tell on me?” You asked him with a laugh.  
“I’ll let it slide.” He smiled. “This time.”  
“Smart of you.”

You poured out two steaming cups of fresh coffee, knowing full well it wouldn’t stay hot for long. Passing one of them to Javier, he gasped and cupped the beverage as though it were his last beacon of hope; the heat radiating through his gloves to thaw his frigid fingers. You cupped your own similarly, welcoming its embrace. Together you waited for it to cool enough to drink, blowing onto the surface and burning your tongues more than once by taking test sips.

“Let’s sit together.” Javier suggested, pointing at a solitary chair in the corner.  
You looked over at it with some confusion and shrugged.  
“You sit, Javi. I’m fine here.”  
He set down his cup and approached the chair, dragging it closer to the fire and taking a seat. He patted his knee invitingly as he reclaimed his coffee, shooting you a suggestive smirk. You grinned at the invitation. How could you argue with that?

You sank onto his thighs sideways, holding your drink steady so you didn’t spill it on the poor man. He wrapped his arm around your waist, his other hand still occupied by his own drink. You snuggled into him happily, enjoying the closeness you hadn’t been able to share since fleeing Blackwater. With everyone cooped up in close proximity, chances to get private time with Javier were rare. His familiar scent filled your senses; leather, metal, coffee and that which was unique to him. It comforted you better than any blanket could.

Together you sat, silently enjoying your coffee and each other’s embrace. When the cups were drained, he circled both his arms around you and buried his face into your neck, his nose cold against what little skin you had bared.  
“_Te amo._” He whispered, planting a cold kiss on your skin, tilting his head up again to look at your face.  
“I love you too.” You smiled and pressed your lips against his.

He cupped the back of your head gently as you kissed him tenderly, ignoring how cold both of your lips were. He worked his lips against yours, parting his slightly and inviting you to taste him. You copied him and his tongue darted out to meet yours, tasting sharply of coffee. He caressed your tongue with his, slowly dancing them together with all the intimacy of an impassioned lover. The chair creaked as you pressed yourself closer against him, your gloved fingers sliding under his poncho, longing to feel the hammering of his heart against your palm.

The crunching of footsteps behind you forced you breathlessly apart. Looking around, you saw Pearson had returned from wherever he had wandered off to. He cleared his throat at the sight of what he had just interrupted, avoiding both of your eyes. You smiled and made to slide off Javier’s lap, but he tightened his grip on you and pulled you back.

“Hey, Pearson.” Javier quipped. “There’s coffee in the pot if you don’t mind if (y/n) and I stay here.”  
“Coffee?” Pearson looked at the percolator in surprise. “Well, I can’t say no to a bribe like that.”  
“That’s what I thought.” Javier snickered.  
You smiled and tightened your grip on him, resting your head against his shoulder.  
“Just don’t get too comfortable.” Pearson said as he poured himself a cup. “I don’t want to see that.”


End file.
